The Games Journal

ISSUE 463 -MARCH 2014 ISSN 0257-361X Volume 37 THE GAMES JOURNAL www.gamesjournal.at INTERNATIONAL EDITION: IN THIS ISSUE WE PRESENT 54 GAMES OUR REVIEW u STEAM PARK ROBOT FESTIVAL IN ROBOBURG of the small attractions in one turn. An attraction must, of course, build com- pletely on the starting area and may not STEAM PARK stuck out over the border. When an attrac- ROBOTS NEED FUN FAIRS, TOO tion has been built it cannot be relocated. The same rules goes for the Stands, for which is a separate symbol. You also cannot Family Park Tycoon was the name of my The six sides of all the dice show one symbol build several Stands of the same kind in a very first development simulation for a PC, each for building rides, luring visitor robots, turn. in the early Nineties of the last century. How cleaning up, playing a bonus card, build does that sound, ancient, doesn’t it?! But, Stands and one empty side. The turn order For each visitor robot that you set aside you anyhow, we constructed Fun Fairs, attracted markers are numbered from One to Four take one of the robots and put all of them visitors, created our own roller coasters - the and have, in ascending order, characteristics first ones were disasters, by the way, the car- of decreasing value. When the first three Kurt Schellenbauer riages did fly off the rails permanently - and markers have been taken, the last player I felt catapulted back to the Nineties of the last century finally we looked after the garden and took has exactly three more rolls and must then when we built Fun Fairs on the computer and tried to care that all the garbage the visitor masses place his remaining dice on the Pig. attract as many visitors as possible. And back then, we had difficulties with garbage, too. left behind was removed. The next phase is the Dirt phase. Three of I did like the little manikins that were armed the six symbols on the dice carry an addi- into the cloth bag. Which of the colors you with brooms and permanently, like Sisy- tional Dirt symbol. Each player must take a choose is left to your decision. Then you phus, scurried after the garbage heaps and Dirt marker for each Dirt symbol on his dice, draw the same number of bots from the kept crying for reinforcements. As a clever one for each visiting robot in his park and, cloth that you previously did throw in. Thus business men I did not, of course, pro- finally, the turn order markers are evaluated: you have always six robots left in the bag. vide reinforcement, because the manikins For Number One you may discard four Dirt would have been hard put to resign. markers, for Number Two two markers, It is checked if the robots you drew from the bag correspond to rides as regards to Fun Fair and Garbage Removal were the Number Three can discard none of them color and either place them at those rides, cues that enticed me to take a closer look and for Number Four you must take two Dirt if there is room for them there, or put them at the board game Steam Park. In this game Markers. In this phase you must pay special back into stock. A ride can take one visitor you construct a Fun Fair for robots, that attention, it happens again and again that for each square that it takes up on the park is, the visitors are robots. Before you start one forgets about the dirt from the visiting area. the first game you should plan some time robots. for preparations, there are a few neces- Then you take care of cleanliness in the park! sary ones, as there six different attractions The third phase is the action phase in which For each corresponding die symbol you can in three different sizes, plus five different you place the dice you chose accordingly. return 2 Dirt markers. With the last available Stands ins four copies each, all of those The turn order is determined by the turn or- symbol you can play bonus cards to acquire come as three-dimensional equipment that der markers you took in the previous phase. some money. Cards relate to rides, Stands, must be assembled. Each die can only be used once and, so to colors or other combinations in the park of say, represents you resources. If you have a player. Variety is mostly in demand, but Each player is giving a starting area show- used/implemented a die you remove it from there are a few cards that aim for monotony. ing a 4x4 squares grid, six dice and a Pig, to the Pig. be more exact, a tile that depicts a Pig and As a sixth action you can choose any die which you use to place the dice you rolled. Each of the six kinds of actions, yes there are (not an empty side) and swap the die for Everybody is then dealt six cards from the six possible six actions, despite there being an additional park are of grid size 2x2. This stack of bonus cards and may keep three of only five symbols, can only be implement- you can do once or twice in a turn. This them. ed once in a turn, but sometimes there are supplementary area must be added to the multiple actions possible within one action, existing area with its total width or length. Then you pick one visitor robot of each of while you have corresponding dice symbols. Those extensions of the park areas are very the six colors and throw it into a bag, and There are no parameters in which order you important, because you run very soon into the fun can begin. The game is played over implement actions. You can build three dif- the problems of limited available building six rounds comprising four phases each. ferent sizes of rides, between one and three space is those extension are a far cry from squares. For each square you need a die. the consolation price that they are looked The first of those four phases is the dice upon for in the rules. phase. All players pick up their six dice and When constructing you must avoid contact roll them simultaneously to try to achieve between opposing colors or Stands, also Stands have a very important additional the necessary results as quickly as possible. not over corners, which makes the starting function: Each Stand you build always re- When you want to keep a die to use it you tile very small, because you only have four lates to a die symbol: Toilets double the set it aside on your Pig. It is important to corners. Rides of the same color must touch symbol for “cleaning up”, so that you can remember that, once a die is placed on the along a long or short side of a square and discard four instead of two dirt markers. The Pig, it cannot be re-rolled. As soon as all six are considered as one ride from this mo- Promotion Stand doubles the number of of your dice are placed on the Pig, you take ment on. Constructing several rides of the visitors, the Info Point enables you to place a turn order marker quickly. same size within one turn is forbidden. This visitors on rides that do not correspond in rule ensures that a player does not build all color. Those visitors must be put back into Color codes, target groups, features, icons and GABIS are 2 ISSUE 463 / MARCH 2014 explained on page 5 and at the bottom of pages 34 and 35 www.gamesjournal.at STEAM PARK / 40 LINES FOR MEEPLES t OUR REVIEW stock after the next income phase. Casino dice rolling phase and therefore I almost enables you to turn a die to the result you never have to take Dirt markers due to turn wish for and for Security you can put back a order but usually manage to get rid of some visitor, which you have drawn this moment, of those Dirt markers. back into the bag and draw a new one. The construction phase depends on what The fourth phase is the income Phase, in you rolled, and, especially in the later stages which you receive 300 Danari - this is the of the game, on what you could still con- currency in Roboburg - for each visitor in struct, because, especially in case of four your park. If you hold less than three bonus players, the Rides and Stands become cards you are given two new ones for each scarce quite quickly. The overall flow of the one he lacks, chooses one of them and dis- game is very smooth, provided that players cards the other one. Now you should have devote a bit of consideration beforehand of three bonus cards again. how to use their dice. The individual phases Now we are able to begin the next round. are short and implementation of moves evolves logically and they are done quickly. The game ends at the end of Round Six and Four Reference cards provide a summary of at that point you count your Dirt markers the most important moves and of the func- and check the table for the amount of Da- tions of the Stands, albeit written in very nari that you would have to pay to clean up small print. Here is was again, age breathing your park.

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